In 2012, de Nationaw Database and Registration Audority (NADRA) indicated dat de contemporary Buddhist popuwation of Pakistan was minuscuwe wif 1,492 aduwt howders of nationaw identity cards (CNICs). The totaw popuwation of Buddhists is derefore unwikewy to be more dan a few dousand.[2] In 2017, number of Buddhist voters was stated to be 1,884 and dey are mostwy concentrated in Sindh and Punjab.[3]

The onwy functionaw Buddhist tempwe in Pakistan is in de Dipwomatic Encwave at Iswamabad, used by Buddhist dipwomats from countries wike Sri Lanka.[4]

Buddhism came to dis part of de country in de wate 7f century when most of de masses were practicing bon rewigion, uh-hah-hah-hah.
Before de arrivaw of Iswam, Tibetan Buddhism and Bön (to a wesser extent) were de main rewigions in Bawtistan, uh-hah-hah-hah. Buddhism can be traced back to before de formation of de Tibetan Empire. The region has a number of surviving Buddhist archaeowogicaw sites. These incwude de Mandaw Buddha Rock, a rock rewief of de Buddha at de edge of de viwwage (near Skardu) and de Sacred Rock of Hunza. Nearby are former sites of Buddhist shewters.

Bawtistan had Buddhist majority tiww de 15f century, before de arrivaw of Iswam in dis region, uh-hah-hah-hah. Since den most of de peopwe converted to Iswam, de presence of Buddhism in dis region has now been wimited to archeowogicaw sites, as de remaining Buddhists of dis region moved east to wadakh where Buddhism is de majority rewigion, uh-hah-hah-hah.

The majority of peopwe in Gandhara, present-day Soudern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, were Buddhist. Gandhara was wargewy Mahayana Buddhist, but awso a stronghowd of Vajrayana Buddhism. The Swat Vawwey, known in antiqwity as Uddiyana, was a kingdom tributary to Gandhara. There are many archaeowogicaw sites from de Buddhist era in Swat.

The Buddhist sage Padmasambhava is said to have been born in a viwwage near de present day town of Chakdara in Lower Dir District, which was den a part of Oddiyana. Padmasambhava is known as Guru Rinpoche in Tibetan and it is he who introduced Vajrayana Buddhism in Tibet.

The presence of Pakistani Buddhists in modern pakistan is uncwear,[6] awdough a few Pakistanis have reported demsewves as Buddhist. A report mentions dat dey are onwy found in de so cawwed Azad Kashmir region, uh-hah-hah-hah.[7] The Nurbakhshi sect is said to retain some ewements of Buddhism.[8] Anoder report mentions a nomadic Baori (Bawariya) tribe on de outskirts of Mandi Yazman and Rahimyar Khan as being Buddhist.[9]

Tridev Roy, de Chakma chief, supported Pakistan during de 1971 Bangwadesh Liberation War weft de Chittagong region and settwed in Pakistan, uh-hah-hah-hah. He cwaimed to represent de Buddhists of Pakistan by founding and chairing de "Pakistan Buddhist Society" from 1996 untiw his deaf in 2012.[10] His famiwy stayed behind in Bangwadesh.

Gandhara remained a wargewy Hindu-Buddhist wand untiw around 10f century CE, when Suwtan Mahmud conqwered de region and introduced Iswam. There was settwement of Muswims and de emigration of Hindu-Buddhists.[11]

The Swat Vawwey in Pakistan has many Buddhist carvings and stupas, and Jehanabad contains a Seated Buddha statue.[12] Kushan era Buddhist stupas and statues in Swat vawwey were demowished by de Tawiban and after two attempts by de Tawiban, de Jehanabad Buddha's face was dynamited.[13][14][15] Onwy de Bamiyan Buddhas were warger dan de carved giant Buddha statue in Swat near Mangawore which de Tawiban attacked.[16] The government did noding to safeguard de statue after de initiaw attempt at destroying it, which did not cause permanent harm, but when de second attack took pwace on de statue de feet, shouwders, and face were demowished.[17] Iswamists such as de Tawiban and wooters destroyed much of Pakistan's Buddhist artifacts weft over from de Buddhist Gandhara civiwization, especiawwy in Swat Vawwey.[18] The Tawiban dewiberatewy targeted Gandhara Buddhist rewics for destruction, uh-hah-hah-hah.[19] The Christian Archbishop of Lahore Lawrence John Sawdanha wrote a wetter to Pakistan's government denouncing de Tawiban activities in Swat Vawwey incwuding deir destruction of Buddha statues and deir attacks on Christians, Sikhs, and Hindus.[20] Gandhara Buddhist artifacts were awso wooted by smuggwers.[21] A group of Itawians hewped repair de Buddha at Jahan Abad, Swat.[22]

In March 2013, a group of around 20 Buddhist monks from Souf Korea made de journey to de monastery of Takht-e-Bahi, 170 kiwometres (106 miwes) from Iswamabad. The monks defied appeaws from Seouw to abandon deir trip for safety reasons and were guarded by Pakistani security forces on deir visit to de monastery, buiwt of ochre-cowoured stone and nestwed on a mountainside. From around 1,000 years BC untiw de sevenf century AD, nordern Pakistan and parts of modern Afghanistan formed de Gandhara kingdom, where Greek and Buddhist customs mixed to create what became de Mahayana strand of de rewigion, uh-hah-hah-hah. The monk Marananta set out from what is now nordwest Pakistan to cross China and spread Buddhism on de Korean peninsuwa during de fourf century. The audorities are even pwanning package tours for visitors from China, Japan, Singapore and Souf Korea, incwuding trips to de Buddhist sites at Takht-e-Bahi, Swat, Peshawar and Taxiwa, near Iswamabad.[23]

Takht means “drone” and bahi, “water” or “spring” in Persian/Urdu. The monastic compwex was cawwed Takht-i-Bahi because it was buiwt atop a hiww and awso adjacent to a stream. Located 80 kiwometers from Peshawar and 16 kiwometers Nordwest of de city of Mardan, Takht-I-Bahi was unearded in earwy 20f century and in 1980 it was incwuded in de UNESCO Worwd Heritage wist as de wargest Buddhist remains in Gandhara, awong wif de Sahr-i-Bahwow urban remains dat date back to de same period, wocated about a kiwometer souf.[24]

The modern town of Taxiwa is 35 km from Iswamabad. Most of de archaeowogicaw sites of Taxiwa (600 BC to 500 AD) are wocated around Taxiwa Museum. For over one dousand years, Taxiwa remained famous as a centre of wearning Gandhara art of scuwpture, architecture, education and Buddhism in de days of Buddhist gwory.[25] There are over 50 archaeowogicaw sites scattered in a radius of 30 km around Taxiwa. Some of de most important sites are: Dhamarajika Stupa and Monastery (300 BC - 200 AD), Bhir Mound (600-200 BC), Sirkap (200 BC - 600 AD), Jandiaw Tempwe (c.250 BC) and Jauwian Monastery (200 - 600 AD).[26]

A museum comprising various sections wif rich archaeowogicaw finds of Taxiwa, arranged in chronowogicaw order and properwy wabewed, has been estabwished cwose to de site.[26]

Mingora, 3 km away from Saidu Sharif, has yiewded magnificent pieces of Buddhist scuwpture and de ruins of a great stupa. Shingardar Stupa is one of de famous wocated near Bariko Oder stupas wike Amaan Kot and Jehan-a-Abad are too a great asset.[27]

The Lush-green vawwey of Swat District—wif its rushing torrents, icy-cowd wakes, fruit-waden orchards and fwower-decked swopes—is ideaw for howiday-makers intent on rewaxation, uh-hah-hah-hah. It awso has a rich historicaw past: "Udayana" (de "Garden") of de ancient Hindu epics; "de wand of endrawwing beauty", where Awexander of Macedonia fought and won some of his major battwes before crossing over to de pwains of Pakistan, and "de vawwey of de hanging chains" described by de famous Chinese piwgrim-chronicwers, Faxian and Xuanzang in de fiff and sevenf centuries. Swat was once a cradwe for major strands of Buddhism, where 1,400 monasteries fwourished: Littwe Vehicwe, Great Vehicwe and de Esoteric sects. It was de home of de famous Gandhara Schoow of Scuwpture which was an expression of Graeco-Roman form in de wocaw Buddhist tradition, uh-hah-hah-hah.[28]

Amwukdara stupa

However, de ruins of great Buddhist stupas, monasteries and statues are found aww over Swat.[29][30]